French Baby Names: Prune, Anyone?

I was lucky enough to go to Paris recently, and like most tourists, I ate croissants in sidewalk cafes, visited museums, and walked along the Seine. Unlike most tourists, I also investigated the chicest French baby names.

“Prune,” pronounced a very stylish and knowledgeable Parisian woman of my acquaintance. “Prune is the newest, most charming name for little girls.”

It’s hard to imagine Prune as a charming name for a child in any country, until you realize that in French it’s the equivalent of Plum. Now THAT makes sense.

For boys, this same friend offered the name Illan, another unlikely translation to English. In France, it’s pronounced Ee-lahn and sounds quite elegant.

Another friend, who volunteers at a Montessori preschool near the Louvre, said her class includes children named Capucine, the French for nasturtium; Frostine, best known to American children as the queen in Candyland; and Zingo — though Zingo (a boy) is Japanese.

HELENE — English speakers would say Hel-een but the French prononce this Hell-EHN.

LOU — Many Lou-related names are stylish in France as well as throughout Europe. Other versions chic now include Lilou (lee-loo) and Malou (mah-loo).

LOUISE — I mention this long form separately from Lou to make the point that the French version of names typically does not end with an “a” sound — Louise vs. Louisa, Diane instead of Diana, Marie not Maria.